1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a cap, cap assembly or a dispensing or dosing closure adapted to be installed on a container and which can contain therein or accommodate at least one dispensable component such as e.g., a powder or tablets. With such a cap, the dispensable component can be kept or maintained separate from one or more components in a container even while installed thereon. Additionally, the cap can also be activated or placed in a dispensing position so that the dispensable component is caused to pass from within the cap into the container and thereby, e.g., mix with the component(s) in the container.
2. Discussion of Background Information
Many different styles of caps, lids and closures have been well documented and described in the prior art. They include tamper evident closures, caps that seal the container using a check valve taking advantage of the squeeze action of a flexible bottle to create the pressure differential to activate the valve, and other devices. Also prior art concerning containers with two compartments, separating two ingredients to be mixed before consumption, exist; but few if any of these containers are commercially available mostly because of complicated parts, difficulty of filling and high manufacturing cost.
Many of these devices consist of a piercing tip or cutter that perforates or cuts a foil seal, blister pack or membrane releasing one component into a supplemental component, usually tablets, granules or powders into a liquid. Minor differences, consisting mostly of how the piercing tip is activated, differentiate these devices. Whether piercing tips or cutters are used to remove the seal between compartments, there is always the danger of having fragments of foil or other residue fall into the mixed components.
Caps have been disclosed which overcome many of the above-noted disadvantageous. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,503,453 to CRONIN et al. discloses various cap embodiments which can dispense a dispensable component into a container. FIGS. 1-5 of the instant application show one embodiment of CRONIN (see FIGS. 8-13 of CRONIN). As can be seen in FIGS. 1-5, the cap C is installed on a neck opening 102 of a container 100. The container 100 has a body or wall 101 and can include a collar 103. As can be seen from comparing FIGS. 1 and 2 with FIGS. 3 and 4, when a user desires to dispense the dispensable component from within the cap C into the container 100, the user need only remove the tear strip TS and move the dome-shaped upper end of the cap C towards the container 100. This allows the dispensable component to pass out of the cap C into the container 100 (not shown, but see FIG. 13 of CRONIN). The entire disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 7,503,453 to CRONIN et al. is hereby expressly incorporated by reference.
This invention provides a cap or cap and container that can overcome one or more, and preferably many, of the disadvantages of the prior art while providing a cap or cap and container that is easy to use, uses a minimum number of parts, and that is simple to manufacture and assemble.